At a glance:
- Tottenham face Aston Villa on Sunday
- Unai Emery’s side predicted to win
- Spurs’ relegation misery to deepen
Tottenham Hotspur travel to Villa Park to take on Aston Villa on Sunday in what will be another important Premier League clash for Roberto De Zerbi.
The Italian spearheaded the club to their first win in the competition in 2026 as they secured a 1-0 win against Wolves.
However, with West Ham and Nottingham Forest also winning, Tottenham remain in the relegation zone, two points below the Hammers.
And now, Paul Merson feels their relegation fears will only get worse this weekend as he made a bold scoreline prediction for the game.
Tottenham tipped to lose to Aston Villa
Tottenham will be without Xavi Simons and Dominic Solanke after the pair picked up injuries vs Wolves.
Randal Kolo Muani is fit to face Villa despite claims that he was suffering from a knock, which is good news for De Zerbi.
Merson feels the void left by Simons and Solanke will prove to be too big for Tottenham to fill, as he predicted the home side to secure a 2-0 victory.
“Tottenham will be kicking themselves that Aston Villa did not beat Fulham last weekend,” wrote the former Arsenal man for Sportskeeda.
“But now, if Brighton win this weekend, their gap with Villa will be down to five points, which makes this a must-win game for Unai Emery’s side.
Read More: Tottenham predicted lineup vs Aston Villa as De Zerbi chooses Xavi Simons replacement
“If you told me I should take two players off the Tottenham team for this game, Xavi Simons and Dom Solanke would be my last choices.
“Both of them are out of this game! How are Spurs even going to win against Villa without them?”
Merson on the relegation battle
West Ham play each of their next three Premier League games before Tottenham, which could prove to be an advantage for them as they can put the pressure on De Zerbi’s side.
And Merson feels the Hammers have a better chance of winning three points this week than Tottenham.
“If West Ham lose to Brentford this weekend, this game is a free swing for Tottenham. But if they win, the pressure will be on Spurs,” continued Merson.
“Tottenham will hope West Ham don’t win. Next weekend, the Hammers face Arsenal while Spurs have Leeds at home. So in a week, it could all turn around in favour of Tottenham.
“The team that will stay up in the Premier League this season will be the one that produces a ‘wow’ result from now until the end of the season.
“We saw that with West Ham last weekend, when Callum Wilson scored the late winner against Everton.
“They need one more win like that and I expect them to have a stronger chance of winning this weekend than Tottenham.”
The game against Villa is a must-win clash as Tottenham only have four games to save themselves.
